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LIFE INSURANCE 



OFFERING. 



v 



BY SEMITE!, S. LLOYD. 



2871 



New- York : 
S. W. GREEN, PRINTER, 16 AND iS JACOB STREET. 



1871. 



A/ 4 f 77$ 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1871, by 

SAMUEL H. LLOYD, 
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



THE 

LIFE INSURANCE OFFERING. 



Life Insurance is for All, 



All hail the days the arts are bringing nigh ! 
Hope springs anew, and lower bends the sky ; 
They light the present by the future ray, 
And move the car of progress on its way, 
Kindling a torch within Time's hoary hand 
To scatter truth and culture through the land. 
Behold the power that chains the lightning steed I 
Obedient to its will and human need ; — 
The stars that shine so distant and so pale 
That counts and weighs the mountains in a scale, 
Unclasps her scroll, and lo ! the sorrows flee 
Like rivers dashing to a hidden sea ! 
Secure as time, we boldly plead the cause 
Benignant as the skies that flash its laws. 



There is no institution of society that at the 
present time is commanding more attention from 
every class than that of life insurance, because it 
touches more human interests and appeals directly 
to every individual. It has become one of the in- 
stitutions of the present century, and cannot be 
safely disowned by any. He who attempts to de- 



4 Life Insurance Offering. 

spise it, shows his own weakness. To the church, 
the court of justice, the school-house, has now been 
added the Life Insurance office, and around it are 
interwoven the best interests of society. Many a 
home now adorned with luxury, many a humble 
cottage, the abode of comfort and refinement, the 
home of virtue and religion, has been saved to add 
to its achievements ; while the influences it exerts 
in producing thrift, and the present comfort it af- 
fords, though often lost sight of, are among its 
proudest triumphs. 

Life was given us as a school for the training of 
the soul. Men are placed in families, in communi- 
ties, and nations, and each has relations forced up- 
on him from the very fact of being in the world ; 
and he who shrinks from his duty is a coward, and, 
if he neglects to perform his duty, in that he comes 
short of what his Maker requires, is criminal to that 
extent. 

EVERY MAN'S DUTY AND INTEREST. 

Among the recognized facts of all civilized lands 
is the duty of every man to his family. It is a 
beautiful law of nature, and this is the law that un- 
derlies the first formation of society. God rules 
over all, but in doing so, often uses us as instru- 
mentalities. Christian civilization and human 
science have found, by a wise application of the 



Life Insurance Offering. 5 

law of average, that proper provisions can be made 
by which no person in any way industrious of 
thrifty need deprive himself of the comfort and the 
family of the means of protection from the effects of 
death, that so often prove disastrous to those for 
whom it is our duty to provide. 

The merchant, the mechanic, the professional 
man, the accountant, the laborer, all find here just 
the institution they require. The merchant may 
have all his money in his business. If he dies 
without a policy, his family w r ould be left to suffer, 
because no estate can be settled in a day. Per* 
haps he has borrowed capital, and his friends would 
suffer also by allowing those not interested in his 
property to handle and settle the same. Can such 
a man safely, prudently, and honestly do without 
life insurance ? Thousands every year answer, No> 
and procure the requisite protection. The others, 
laboring daily, may strive to lay aside something 
weekly, monthly, or yearly for the homestead, or 
farm, or investment. Have such a right to forego 
the present protection that life insurance affords, 
and are not the scattering of families, the charitable 
institutions of the land, the orphan asylums, living 
witnesses to the folly of those who neglect the pro- 
tection of a policy ? Better to borrow the money 
to pay the premiums than to neglect so great a 
blessing. 

1* 



6 Life Insurance Offering, 

LIFE INSURANCE AFFORDS THE NEEDED PROTEC- 
TION. 

There is still another view of this subject worthy 
of every consideration, and that is the comfort it 
brings to you, the peace it brings to your own 
mind. By the life insurance policy, you purchase 
at the beginning of life a competency, ordinarily 
expected only at its close — by payment of annual 
contributions, a deed to so much property, thus 
anticipating the rewards of industry and a success- 
ful business career. Now, have you a right to rob 
yourselves of the comfort that the knowledge will 
afford that you have secured such a priceless boon 
to your family ? I take it for granted that you feel 
an interest in your family, in your aged father or 
mother, or helpless brothers or sisters ; that you 
have a heart, and cherish the love-light in the eye 
and love to catch the overflowing of the soul. If 
not, you are a cold, selfish, and wicked man, and 
life's greatest boon — a loving and susceptible heart 
— you have refused to accept. No one who ever 
took out a policy of insurance in a good, sound, and 
safe company ever regretted it. To say that such a 
person exists, is to say that virtue is not its own re- 
ward, that light is not pleasant to the eye, ana to 
be in a proper condition of mind and heart does not 
produce contentment. We have a right, while pur- » 



Life hisurance Offering, f 

suing our daily avocations, to be as free from care 
as possible. Unless so freed, life is never correct- 
ly understood by us, is not seen in its true propor- 
tions. We cannot otherwise, without great difficul- 
ty, be good Christians, good citizens, or properly 
fulfil our various duties. When so relieved, life 
has a deeper significance and the stars reflect the 
glory of the Maker. Religion does these things by 
giving us the proper mainsprings of action ; for it 
is not the whole province of religion to come 
directly to the heart and to spend itself in mere 
emotions ; substantial results are expected of every 
one of us. 

WE MUST NOT COP4PLAIN IF WE DO NOT ACCEPT 
THE PROVISION MADE FOR US. 

We must accept the means to produce a given 
conclusion. God gives us our daily bread ; but the 
bread does not grow — he gives it in the ripening 
blade or ear, or in the seed or corn. The seed 
must be planted and the sickle applied, and prac- 
tical chemistry finish what the Divine Bounty first 
bestowed ; for the remainder He uses human in- 
strumentalities. He that leaves Providence to 
provide his daily bread will find -his children beg- 
gars, and that his career will end in the almhouse. 
He that leaves Providence to provide in the event 
of his death, is like the soldier who lingers behind 



8 Life Insurance Offering. 

while the battle is raging ; he should be drummed 
out of the army of progress now marching forward 
to inherit the earth. No person having taken out 
a policy on his life ever regretted doing so. If, after 
this, you do not take a policy, do not blame the 
agent. He awaits your application. 



The History of Insurance. 

Fire and Life Insurance, each in its turn, has 
been the subject, in the commencement, of the 
same treatment ; each was regarded as needlessly 
and wickedly playing upon the fears of the people. 
Those engaged in the work of bringing the matter 
home to counting-room and fireside were consider- 
ed not only as engaged in a useless work, bat 
positive pests to society. 

ANTIQUITY OF INSURANCE. 

Setting aside the antiquity of insurance — for there 
are many who contend that Greece and Rome laid 
the foundations of this noble superstructure — insur- 
ance was first applied to marine casualties. The 
first legislation upon this subject is traced to the 
year 1435. Following the history of Marine Insur- 
ance, it appears from the first to have been favorably 
received; and its progress was always unattended 



Life Insurance Offering. 9 

with those obstacles that the advocates of both Fire 
and Life Insurance had to encounter. The reason 
may probably exist in the fact that the dangers at- 
tending the winds and waves were more apparent 
than the security that one feels at times of peaceful 
prosperity that attends his dwelling and his life. 
Also in the fact that the matter was confined prin- 
cipally to those classes of the community whose 
occupations in commerce naturally qualify them for 
enlarged views, especially where the subject can be 
demonstrated by figures and their own experience. 
" The proportionate hazard of different voyages, 
which constituted the essential qualities of Marine 
Insurance, appears, however, to have been under- 
stood so early that something approaching to the 
principle seems to have been employed in the latter 
ages of Rome, by which vessels lost at sea, or taken 
by the enemy, were to be replaced in return for 
supplies furnished to the army in Spain. This 
agreement of indemnification may be considered 
an assurance, though defective in the modem con- 
dition of a premium." {Louis Pocock on Life In- 
swa?ice.) 

Next came annuities on lives, originating or 
popularized by Tonti, a Neapolitan, about the, 
middle of the seventeenth century. His system/ 
however, was very defective, and soon passed into 
other and more equitable forms. Pascal seems to 



io Life Insttrance Offering. 

have been the first to suggest the application of 
" the theory of probability to meet the wants of 
mankind ;" and De Witt the first to collect and 
apply that theory for the requirements of his govern- 
ment. The system above alluded to is by the pay- 
ment to the government of a specified sum, the 
party to receive a stipulated annual sum during 
iife. 

Though Fire Insurance received some attention 
at the hands of the Saxon guilds — (" If any member 
suffer from fire, water, or robbery, or other calamity, 
the guild is to lend him a sum of money without 
mterest") — it was not till 1609 (Count Anthony 
. Gunther) that the principle of yearly premiums was 
proposed for full indemnification. The first com- 
pany did not go into operation in England till 1696. 

TEMPTING PROVIDENCE. 

For a long time previous to this, insurance 
against fire was looked upon as a presumptuotis 
scheme, tempting Providence and injurious to the 
insurer. The principle of insurance being a pro- 
gressive one, it could not, in the order of things, 
long postpone its application to life. Leaving the 
antiquity of Life Insurance to be settled by others, 
(it is known that in the Roman empire a table ex- 
isted by which annuities could be valued,) and 
without stopping to note all the different stages of 



Life Insurance Offering. II 

development, we come to Dr. Halley, who furnished 
the Breslau mortuary tables. From these tables it 
was contended that he was the first actually to give 
direction to the true method of forming those tables 
upon which Life Insurance rests. The first actually 
to form a table of rates, based upon the principles 
of Dr. Halley, was Thomas Simpson, in 1742, who 
appears to have been an eccentric, though it is 
claimed he was " a natural, but self-taught, mathe- 
matician.^ From this time investigation into the 
science of Life Insurance was progressing, and at 
one time resulted in the application of the law of 
chance to many schemes, sometimes at once fan- 
tastic and foolish in character. No science can 
boast of greater names or labors than the develop- 
ment of this science has produced. It brought into 
requisition the best labors of the greatest astrono- 
mers, mathematicians, and scholars of the times. 
Finally, the superstructure received its top-stone 
by the publication by Dr. Price, in 1780, of the 
Northampton table of mortality, basing the science 
upon those very reliable data of mortuary experience* 
Even before this, he had communicated to the 
Equitable Society (Life Insurance) then in existence 
two plans for determining the amount of surplus 
funds. This, of course, included the plan for 
ascertaining the value of existing policies, and en- 
abling the company at all times to make up a 



12 Life Insurance Offering. 

balance-sheet with their customers. These tables, 
with some modifications, have been in use to this? 
time. 

LIFE INSURANCE AS A SCIENCE. 

Dr. Price may then be claimed as the father of 
our present Life Insurance institutions. In his 
system, the circle encompassing the science was 
completed and presented as a whole — a permanent 
addition to the knowledge of the world, and a price- 
less gift to unborn millions. 

The great culminator of truth is experience. 
The tempting of Providence raised by the idea of 
insurance against fire was a phantom, caused by 
ignorance ; the want of recognition of a great 
principle, that now seems clear to every body — the 
laws of chance, reduced and made practical by 
average. It was but the effort of uncultivated con- 
servatism. It fears to take any step in advance, 
even though Providence has thrown a great light 
on our path, to guide our researches and footsteps. 
The man that talks of Life Insurance being opposed 
to Providence reminds one of the deacon who would 
not place a lightning-rod on his church for a similar 
reason. The writer is of the opinion that, in these 
days of light and experience, much of the time 
spent with some objections is lost. Darkness is 
dispersed by letting in light. Let those who would 



Life Insurance Offering. 13 

practically apply the subject of Life Insurance be 
able to explain the principles thoroughly and well, 
and bring to bear such energy as the conviction in 
one's own mind that right produces, and the per- 
suasive eloquence which good motives promote, 
and objections will melt away without attacking 
them directly, and the truth will be impressed upon 
the mind in all its beautiful proportions. We are 
now about at the close of that period when those 
objections that formerly beset the progress of Fire 
Insurance, as in its turn has attacked the progress 
of Life Insurance, can prevail ; and the pe?'iod has 
already been inaugurated, so long foretold 'by friends 
of Life Insurance, whe?i neglect to insure one'' s life 
is thought to be as improvident as the neglect to in- 
sure one's ship, one^s house or merchandise. For- 
merly, when a man lost his dwelling, his neighbors, 
by subscription or by labor, would in part refund 
the loss or repair the damage. Now, if a man does 
not insure, in case of fire, he goes not only un- 
pitied, but censured for his parsimony or neglect. 
In these clays, when only a small daily sum will pro- 
vide for one's family in the event of death, if that 
provision is not made, must not that neglect carry 
with it a greater censure when the hands of the 
living are no longer left to supply the daily wants 
of those that are left — left to the charities of a 
world not altogether cold, but which leaves such a 
2 



14 Life Insurance Offering. 

state to be provided for by ourselves while health 
is ours and the ability is at command ? 

" The good man leaveth an inheritance." 
HISTORY AND PRESENT GROWTH. 

The first Life Insurance society of which we have 
any record is that projected by the Mercer Com- 
pany in London, in 1696 or 1698. In 1699, there 
was another society, called the "Society of Assur- 
ance for Widows and Orphans." Then followed 
the " Amicable, or Perpetual Insurance Society," 
in 1706; and the "Royal Exchange," and the 
"London Assurance," both of the latter in 1721. 
In 1762, the " Equitable," and 1797, the " Pelican." 
All but the first two are now in a flourishing con- 
dition. Life Insurance is found in the United 
States in 1769, in a society called the "Protestant 
Episcopal Association for the Benefit of Widows 
and Children of Clergymen of the Commonwealth 
of Pennsylvania." In 18 12, the " Pennsylvania" 
was established, and its doors opened to the public. 
Then followed the " Massachusetts," in 18 18. The 
year 1842, however, seems to have been the date 
from which Life Insurance may be said to have 
gone into successful operation in the United States. 
Since that time, Life Insurance in this country, in 
Hie solidity of its character, adaptation to the wants 



Life Insurance Offering. \$ 

of the insured, and large returns, has exceeded any 
thing that has preceded it, and excelled all similar 
institutions wherever established. 



J 



NYESTMENTS. 



As an investment, Life Insurance is worthy of 
consideration. Taking tie expectation of life into 
the calculation, in a well-managed and successful 
company, the annual outlay of premiums will 
without doubt yield a fair interest for the invest- 
ment ; while if death occur at earlier ages, the rate 
is multiplied a hundred or a thousand fold. The 
investment of money in a savings-bank, of funds 
not required during life, isjiothing to be compared 
with it, as facts will clearly demonstrate. Sup^ 
posing a party has United States bonds, or any 
other paying security, to what better use can he 
put the interest than in Life Insurance, to place 
him and family beyond all contingencies as to the 
future and to add largely to the capital already ac- 
cumulated ? 

It would be a misfortune, and take from Life In- 
surance its chief attraction, should the motives to 
practise it ever be directed to a simple commercial 
or business transaction. And yet, judged by strict 
rules, it stands the test of wisdom and of a judi- 
cious investment of funds. 



1 6 Life Insurance Offering. 



The Complaint. 



There are some people whose benevolence and 
justice need to be excited so as to be enlarged, 
that they may properly appreciate the relations they 
sustain, as policy-holders, to other members of the 
same company who are also policy-holders. A gen- 
tleman stated to the writer some weeks since, " If 
I were sure that I would not live ten years, I would 
insure my life." In this reply there is neither jus- 
tice nor benevolence. It betrays an entire ignorance 
of the principles of Life Insurance, and the thought 
is one of extreme selfishness and worthy of condem- 
nation. The true reason offers a stronger and better 
motive why you should insure. We are not sure of 
living even a day ; for that reason, if science or 
philanthropy offers the certainty of a competency 
in the event of the contingency of being taken 
away, we should avail ourselves of the benefit of it. 
Are we not criminal if we do not ? It is true, you 
may live for many years. Even then we should 
not feel that the policy has been dearly purchased, 
although those who live the longest pay much more 
largely into the treasury of a Life Insurance company 
than those who drop early by the wayside ; for you 
have had the comfort of the policy all the time the 
company has earned the risk it had taken ; and, as 



Life Insurance Offering. if 

an end must come to all finite things, if the policy 
Is kept up, even in the longest life, the result, in a 
prudent Life Insurance company, will always justify 
the utmost expenditures that can possibly be made. 

AN INCIDENT. LONG LIFE AND LIFE INSURANCE. 

An incident that recently took place is the occa- 
sion of the above remarks. 

A gentleman, who had been insured about ten 
years for $5000, called, in no very amiable mood, to 
pay his premium due that day. Throwing the 
money on the counter with his policy, and in an 
excited manner, with his face looking as if a 
thun ler-storm was fast arising, " There," said he, 
" I will never get through paying my premiums ; 
the blasted policy ! see the money it has cost me. 
It is an investment, isn't it ?" 

" My dear friend," said the agent, " what can be 
the matter ? Any fault to find with the Company — 
what can we do for you ?" 

" Nothing ; but this policy costs me so much ! I 
will never get through paying ; but I suppose I 
must pay the premium." 

The agent replied : " The policy you took whs 
taken out on the life plan, at a very low rate of 
premium, covering as nearly as possible only the 
cost of insurance, and with the understanding that 
you should pay the premium annually during life. 



1 8 Life Insurance Offering. 

The premiums were adjusted to that point, and, after 
paying expenses, the difference has been returned 
to you by way of dividends. You could, if you 
pleased, have adopted the ten-year plan, or the en- 
dowment plan ; but then the premium would have 
been adjusted to the facts." 

He yielded a reluctant assent, and departed, 
rather better-natured but gloomily, with his renewal 
receipt. 

THE RESULT. 

Within three months from that time his widow 
called, with his policy and last receipt, to announce 
his death and arrange for the collection of the insur- 
ance. Her visit startled the agent, because so 
sudden, and shows how uncertain is life to those 
deeming themselves most secure ; also the value of 
a life insurance policy under all circumstances. 
Those who live long to pay their premiums should 
be thankful for the privilege, thanking God for his 
goodness, and grateful for the gift of life. To com- 
plain under such privileged circumstances is an act 
of ingratitude, and brings to the surface traits of 
character that need enlightenment. It is the glory 
of Life Insurance, when honestly conducted, that 
every thing proceeds after clearly defined laws, and 
that in its operations the principles of justice and 
benevolence are so clearly united and perpetuated. 



Life Insurance Offering. 19 

The Last Voyage. 

The dashing waves roll high, 

The masts in splinters fall ; 
The sea-bird's piercing cry 

Now mingles with the call, 
." Each at his post attend ! 

The boats let go, the boats 1" 
In vain the captain's voice ; 

The ship now wildly floats. 

Alas ! in vain t^e toil 

The eagle's heart outvied : 
For 'neath the bil'ows sleeps 

The ship, his joy and pride. 
With sighs and moans the sky 

Still lists the waves 1 retrain, 
The starless sea rolls on — 

The soul it could not chain. 

One moment more he craved, 

For flashing on his sight 
A vision sweet of home, 

To cheer that cheerless night ; 
** The home to love so dear 

The hearth-fires siill shall cheer, 
Though at the door my feet 

They ne'er again shall hear." 

The sea rolls on, the sea 

Of to;l and wasting care ; 
But o^r the breaking waves, 

Our hopes that trembling bear, 
Behold the might of love 

The min I to soothe and free ; — 
It plants the sky with stars 

To light that living sea. 

The following incident, one of many that can be produced to the 
same effect, shows the value of a life-policy under all circumstances ; 
and in the danger averted, the reason why wives, mothers, and sis- 
ters should interest themselves in the subject and not become un- 
consciously obstacles in the way of their own happiness and those 
who may be left to suffer in consequence of their neglect and objec- 
tions. 



20 Life Insurance Offering, 

Captain B., a well known officer, attached to 
an old line of vessels, running between New- York 
and Liverpool, had long been desirous of insuring 
his life for $10,000 ; but his wife, feeling the need 
of saving all the family could to discharge a mort- 
gage on their property in Brooklyn, objected so 
strongly that he desisted from his intention. He 
had a happy family, and while he was tossing upon 
the waves of the ocean, pacing the deck at night, 
watching the stars, or directing his ship when the 
storm-clouds gathered about the mast-heads, or the 
waves rolled high and boomed against his vessel, 
with a power that no one can understand who has 
not breasted the waves during some of the great 
storms on the Atlantic, he often thought of his 
home and the dear ones, and what might become 
of them should he go down with his noble ship, 
and his family be. left without better provision for 
their future. During one of these storms, in think- 
ing this matter over, he made up his mind that, 
notwithstanding the objections of his wife, it was 
his duty to act. And just here let us invite the 
reader's attention to his conclusion. 

The husband and father is the responsible head 
of the family, and, in such cases, he has a duty to 
perform from which the objections of even his life- 
partner cannot absolve him — an objection that arises 
from misapprehension, and which, under the en- 



Life Insurance Offering. 11 

lightened facts of the last few years, is rapidly 
being removed, and has now almost entirely dis- 
appeared. 

Upon his arrival in this city, he called upon Mr. 
L — , and effected an insurance for $5000, stating 
the facts above named, and that otherwise he would 
make it $10,000. The fact of his insurance was, 
however, kept from his family. In due time, the 
vessel went to sea, the captain, as usual, in com- 
mand. The day was fair ; happy passengers crowd- 
ed the vessel's decks ; some, having made money, 
going to Europe to visit the gay capitals, or to gaze 
upon its ancient walls, and meditate by its fallen 
columns and broken fountains ; others to wander 
about the pyramids of old Egypt, to sail leisurely 
upon the waters of its sacred Nile, or to tread with 
davoted feet the Olivet of our hopes, and the other 
sacred ^aces hallowed by the feet of the Redeemer. 
She sailed, and that is all that is known. She was 
never heard of more. Not a spar or thread was 
ever wafted to the shore to tell the story. The ocean 
closed over the sinking ship, the guardian spirits 
hovered around ; the rest we shall know when we 
have passed over the silent river, or the blue waves 
of the darker ocean. 

In due time, Mr. L — , being an old friend of the 
family, was sent for by the widow to talk over the 
affairs of her husband's estate. " Let me know 



22 Life Insurance Offering. 

all,' 7 said Mr. L — leisurely, as if in meditation, 
emphasizing peculiarly the word all. 

" tfes," said the widow. " Here is the house in 
which we live." And a pleasant house it was, for 
the captain made every thing comfortable. To 
speak of the useful, it had all the modern improve- 
ments, and the furniture was comfortable, and the 
walls embellished with engravings and paintings — 
among the former that of a sinking ship, with a 
sailor, suspended by a rope, just snatching from 
the raging waters a mother, holding her babe high 
up in her arms, that the waves might not destroy it 
and dash it away from her bosom. 

" Then," said she, " there is that Gore piece of 
land, worth, say, about $1500 — the land my hus- 
band consulted you about before purchasing. Debts 
he left none, for we always pay as we go. Then 
we have a little in the Savings Bank ; for the cap- 
tain said we should always have, beside property, 
a little spare money on hand in case of necessity. 
I said," she remarked, " that there are no debts ; 
but there is one — a mortgage of $4000 on this 
house. And that is the whole story ; except, Mt. 
L — , I desire your judgment and advice in the sale 
of this property and the piece of land, to discharge 
the mortgage, and the balance I want to invest in 
a smaller house, which I desire to be free from in- 
cumbrance." 



Life Insurance Offering. 23 

Mr. L — , looking the widow in the face, said, 
with an apparent but subdued severity : " Madam, 
why do you conceal from me a very large item of 
your husband's estate ?" 

" Sir," said she impatiently, " what do you mean 
by your insinuations ? You cannot be in earnest ?" 

"Yes, I am," said Mr. L — , emphasizing the 
last word. 

" What was it ?" said she. 

" Why, the Life Insurance Policy," replied Mr. 
L — . 

" What Life Insurance Policy ? I would not let 
him take it. I would never take the money, even 
if he had insured." 

" But, my dear madam," said Mr. L- — , " I know 
you would not let him take it ; but for that, he would 
have taken $10,000, instead of which he only took 
$5000, and here is the policy. The money will be 
due from the Company in a few weeks, and I do 
not think you will refuse it ; for it is a precious 
legacy from your husband ; and, no doubt, as his 
proud vessel went down upon the sea, his last 
thoughts were of you, and his last minutes cheered 
with the reflection that, though he was removed, 
the blaze upon the hearth would not die out, nor 
his loved ones be driven from their cheerful heme. 
The policy — the policy — this policy, was, perhaps, 
the last earthly thing that gave him peace." 



24 Life Iftsurance Offering 

It is needless to say the money was paid and 
cheerfully taken. It was the last voyage _, but one 
premium had been paid. In a quiet street in 
Brooklyn the family is still residing. One of the 
daughters has grown up and is married. The cheer- 
ful fireside is still there. The policy saved every 
thing ; and no Life Insurance Company has a bet 
ter friend than the captain's widow. 

It is precisely here that Life Insurance is better 
than charity. It preserves self-respect ; does not 
merely keep families from poverty, but continues 
the household the same as if the head had not been 
removed, and leaves the future not suddenly to be 
changed, but to be continued, and often with in- 
creased happiness, comfort, and means of refined 
culture. 

Life Insurance a Protection. — Among those 
who should particularly embrace Life Insurance are 
those having a mortgage on their property ; the 
foreclosure of which, in the event of death, might 
cause its entire loss. A Life Insurance policy will 
often save the homestead with added blessings. 
Many instances of this are on record. Many times, 
also, the Life Insurance policy is valuable, from the 
debtor to the creditor, and furnishes the exact secu- 
rity desired, when the termination of life would 
leave a contract unfulfilled or a debt undischarged. 



Life Insurance Offering. 2$ 

Life Insurance a Science. 

Life Insurance is a science, not a chance or 
speculation. The whole superstructure is based 
upon the expectation of life, or the average dura- 
tion of life of its members. It will be perceived at 
a glance, supposing one thousand persons desired 
to be insured for $1000 each, the amount to be paid 
at their death, that the exact annual premium that 
each should pay could be exactly determined if the 
following facts were known : The average number of 
years of each life, the rate of interest that the 
money invested would net the company, and the ex- 
penses of doing the business. As to the first, 
many statistics have been made for the use of Life 
Companies and that of governments where land is 
inherited, and where thousands are interested for 
life in the proceeds of property and in its annual divi- 
sion. The result is that the best minds of the last 
and present centuries have been given to the eluci- 
dation of the subject, and at the present time in 
England, Germany, France, in Europe, and in the 
United States the highest mathematical talent and 
the greatest names are found in connection with 
this subject, and the whole domain of mathematics — • 
algebra, logarithms, etc. — are brought into requisi- 
tion to make the knowledge of the science exact, 
and simplify its application to the business of Life 
3 



26 Life Insurance Offering, 

Insurance. A statement of its formulas, etc., would 
no doubt mystify the uninitiated, but the facts can 
readily be pointed out, and an explanation easily 
given and understood. 



LIFE INSURANCE A CONTRACT FOR LIFE. 

Life Insurance, in the mode of computing pre- 
miums, transacting its business, and making up its 
calculations, is essentially different from Fire In- 
surance, growing out principally of this fact, that 
a Fire Insurance policy is generally a contract for 
one year, never over a few years, while a Life In- 
surance policy is a contract for life. In Fire Insur- 
ance, after deducting losses and expenses, the bal- 
ance is net surplus, and may be divided among the 
stockholders or retained as profits for future divi- 
sion ; while in Life Insurance a sum equal to the 
present value of the policy must be set aside and 
kept at interest for the purpose of meeting its en- 
gagements. In Fire Insurance, if the company 
finds the risk unprofitable, it raises the rate or 
declines the business, while in Life Insurance the 
policy must be continued while the premiums are 
regularly settled. Many persons suppose the entire 
assets of a Life company surplus, and a com- 
pany with this large amount of money to be safe 
and reliable because of its large accumulations, 



Life Insurance Offering. 27 

when the surplus of the company may be but very 
small, or, indeed, may not exist at all. To keep 
this amount secure, valuations of each and all poli- 
cies are made by each company, and very elaborate 
reports issued annually by the Commissioners of 
different States of all Life Companies. Those made 
by the Commissioners of New- York and Massa- 
chusetts are especially valuable and full. 

EXACTNESS OF THE SCIENCE. 

As before observed, the three things to be known 
are, the average expectation of life, the rate of in- 
terest, and the ratio of expenses. These being 
known, all is known. Now, it is abundantly under- 
stood that, though no one knows the actual time 
he is to live, the average expectation of life is fully 
enough understood upon which to base a science. 
No one can determine the amount of rain that will 
fall in any given year ; but the average of a series 
of years is a matter of fact. No one can determine 
the duration of any single life ; but the average of 
the whole for fifteen years has often been made a 
matter of calculation, and the agreement found very 
remarkable. From such investigations, tables of 
mortality have been cons' ructed as the starting- 
point in all Life Insurance calculations. The rate 
of interest allowed in making up the tables on the 



28 Life Insurance Offering. 

life rate is general'y four per cent, to which a 
certain amount is added for expenses, varying with 
the tables or kinds of policies. 



DIVISION OF SURPLUS. 

It has been shown that the tables of rates are pro- 
duced by assuming a certain rate of mortality and 
a given percentage for interest and expenses. The 
mortuary tables are generally the " Carlisle" or the 
"Actuaries'," the last called the " Combined Expe- 
rience" tables, the rate of interest being four per 
cent. When the account for the year is closed, the 
surplus can thus be accurately ascertained. The 
gain in mortality experience is generally large by 
selection of risks, and should also be in saving of 
assumed expenses. The principal item in making 
up dividends or return premiums is the excess of 
interest on the reserve or amount left with the com- 
pany to pay each particular policy. The dividends 
when made upon the basis of returning each mem- 
ber the surplus on his class of policies are at first 
comparatively small, but increase, all other things 
being equal, with the age of the policy or time it 
has been in force. The rapidity with which the in- 
terest accumulates after a few years can readily be 
understood by examining the following. At age 30 
an ordinary life policy for $io,ooo, with the annual 



Life Insurance Offering. 29 

premium of $223 60, wi 1 yield excess of interest as 
follows, the calculations being based upon the mor- 
tuary tables last named : 

At the end of the first year, . . . $5 09 
" '• second year, . . 7 88 

« third ■ " . . 10 76 

" " fourth " . . 13 73 

" " fifth " . . . 16 81 

" " tenth " . . 33 73 

" " twentieth year, . 76 30 

" - " thirtieth " . 4 126 62 

" " fortieth " . . . 168 48 

The impossibility of predicting the exact amount 
of such dividends is apparent when every thing de* 
pends upon facts yet to occur. All that any com- 
pany can rightfully promise is to select only sound 
lives, and by economy and good management secure 
the best results of which the business is capable. 
Promises wit'-out these are Of no avail. With 
them, without specific promises, the largest returns 
are secured by every means within human control. 

When these dividends are taken, they go to di- 
minish the annual obligations of the insured. When 
le r t with the company, after a series of years, the 
policy becomes self-sustaining, with a large addit"on 
to the insurance. Policies can become self-sus- 
taining only in this way — by leaving the dividends 



36 Life Insurance Offering. 

to accumulate. Otherwise the obligation to continue 
the payment of premiums is necessitated, for the 
simple reason that all but the necessary reserve to 
the time of annual payment is left with the company, 
the member by his dividends taking the difference. 



"A man may have been fully recognized during 
his lifetime for integrity of character, nobleness of 
disposition, punctuality in all his business transac- 
tions, and general rectitude in his social relations, 
and yet he leaves a blot upon his memory if, his 
resources having become limited, he dies without 
having made necessary provision for his iamily by 
means of Life Insurance." 



Non- Forfeiting Feature. 

Life Insurance, in its application to the various 
wants of the public, is, like every thing else, pro- 
gressive, and being based on a knowledge of facts, 
supported by the experience of over one hundred 
and fifty years, is capable of new and different ap- 
plications as new wants arise and new calculations 
are made. The latter an intelligent actuary can at 
any time perform. The great hindrance in the way 
of many insuring has been the liability of forfeiture 



Life Insurance Offering. 31 

of one's policy, after various payments have been 
made ; also the trouble it imposes on the insured 
party to keep up his yearly payments, even after 
age may be creeping upon us. The tendency of 
Life Insurance is, therefore, in a direction to avoid 
these evils. 

FORFEITURES CAN BE AVOIDED. 

To meet these objections, the Non-Forfeiture 
plan has been adopted, which has met with signal 
success, and is destined to still more wide-spread 
popularity. This plan is not intended, and will by 
no means displace the old modes, which, by the 
payment of the smallest amount, paid annually, 
semi-annually, or quarterly, will secure to the in- 
sured the payment of a specified sum, affording the 
largest amount of insurance for the smallest annual 
outlay. But Life Insurance is unfolding itself in 
this new way to meet the wants of a large class of 
persons who have means and the desire to make 
their payments in such a manner that not one dollar 
of their money can be lost or diverted from the object 
originally proposed ; who also desire, during that 
pa* t of their business life when their energies are 
most active and their ability abundant, to secure as- 
certain sum for their families without furthe r pay- 
ments or trouble. 



32 Life Instirance Offering. 



Js Your Life Insured ? 

Have you a family, or have you any one near and 
dear to you, dependent upon you for support ? 

Are you willing to neglect a present opportunity 
of placing them beyond the possibility of suffering 
want, in the event of your death ? 

Are not the admonitions of the great uncertainty 
of life frequent and impressive ? Should you, in 
view of such uncertainty, even postpone making 
provision for those who now rely upon you for sup- 
port ? 

Are your business affairs so arranged that your 
sudden death would not involve a sacrifice in the 
settlement of your estate ? 

Are there any to whom you are indebted, who 
would suffer loss in the event of your sudden death, 
whom it is your duty to protect ? 

Are there any charities you would like to assist 
from time to time or by bequest, which you could 
not afford or accomplish unless secured by an insu- 
rance on your life ? 

Would you have your mind relieved, while neces- 
sarily living close to your income, in the mere 
support of your family, or in your efforts to main- 
tain or gain a position in society, for the present 



Life Insurance Offering.- 33 

convenience and future welfare both of yourself and 
family ? 

Are you not willing, if necessary, to deny your- 
self some little indulgence to accomplish so good a 
purpose, when only seven to forty cents a day, ac- 
cording to your age, will procure the payment of 
$1000 to $5000 at your death ? 

If so, secure a Policy of Insurance on 
your Life. 



The Trifling Cost of a Policy. — A mis- 
taken idea exists as to the cost of Life Insurance. 
For instance, a man commences to insure at the 
age of 35 years for $5000 : 

Annual premium for $1000, .... $26 00 
Annual premium for $5000, . . . . 130 00 

This is less than thirty-six cents a day, with the 
benefits of dividends to be deducted, or added to 
the policy, to secure to his family, in the event of 
death, $5000. How many daily waste quadruple 
that sum, who yet can not afford to purchase a 
policy for their families ! 



34 Life Insurance Offering. 

The Present Time and its Re- 
quirements. 

We live in an age that, more than any previous 
one, offers security against the ordinary trials and 
privations of life, and greater safeguards against its 
evils. Every thing tends to practical results, and 
few are aware, without reflection, of the many 
changes that Insurance has effected in the great 
affairs of the world. Formerly, when Fire Insur- 
ance was unknown or uncommon, if a person was 
so unfortunate as to have his property destroyed, 
the neighbors would contribute, a sum of money, 
and provide labor sufficient to secure shelter for his 
family. In these days of Fire Insurance, no such 
result would often occur, and but little or no sym- 
pathy is felt for a man whose stupidity, carelessness, 
or desire to save a few dollars, caused his neglect to 
insure his dwelling. Life Insura7ice is certainly in 
a very remarkable degree taking the place of other 
instrumentalities that now appear to belojig only to 
a previous state of civilization. 

SELF-RESPECT PROMOTED BY LIFE INSURANCE. 

We also ca?mot fail to notice the decline in many 
societies that formerly existed, for the distribution of 
charity — such as societies for the support of the 



Life Insurance Offering. 35 

aged, of the families of deceased clergymen, and 
others. Our own self-respect teaches us not to 
leave to others that which we can best provide our* 
selves ; not to trust to the lean hand of an uncertain 
or grudging charity, what our own industry and 
foresight can procure. Clergymen now insure their 
own lives, or their parishes for them ; the husband, 
father, and brother, for their families ; the debtor, 
for his creditor ; the contractor, as additional secu- 
rity. And society is fast tending to regard the 
man who leaves his family destitute; when a Life 
Insurance Policy can so cheaply be purchased, as 
foolish and criminal in his neglect ; and in accord- 
ance with the inevitable results of a changed order 
of society, that neglect is visited upon his family in 
a manner often very hard to endure. Surely our 
families have a right to be protected from such 
hardships and sufferings. It is, therefore, clearly 
the duty of every person to avail himself of every 
improvement and appliance that society may put in 
his way, whereby self-respect is promoted, the best 
interests of the family maintained, and the better 
advancement of the world secured. 

LIFE INSURANCE IS ADAPTED TO THE AGE. 

The world is progressing, though individually 
we may remain stationary. The exactions of soci- 
ety render individual aid in case of losses by fire 



36 Life Insura?ice Offeritig. 

unwise, and as a general thing impossible. Insur- 
ance from fire is, therefore, almost universally 
sought after, by the rich as well as by the poor 
This is in harmony with the advanced state of civi- 
lization at which we have arrived. That same civili- 
zation has rendered the Life Insurance policy the 
wisest, the most economical, and the safest protec- 
tion which society has ever provided, and which 
meets the wants of all, the rich as well as the poor. 
Some people affect to be above it. Such are seldom 
those whose wealth might give them a seeming 
right to occupy such a position ; for none more 
than the wealthy understand how insecure are all 
individual riches, and but few persons, even among 
them, leave this world in such a way that $5000, 
$10,000, or $20,000 ready money will not in some 
way be an advantage in settling one's estate, or 
making more secure the bequests of the departed 
or provide additional comforts Tor a family left with- 
out its natural head and protector ; while to those 
in moderate circumstances, the necessity of secur- 
ing such a policy must be more apparent than words 
can offer ; in fact, whose feelings even words might 
aggravate, unless they led to its purchase. 

THE COST OF LIFE INSURANCE PARALLEL WITH 
OUR ABILITY. 

Whether for the best or not, it is nevertheless 



Life Insurance Offering. 37 

true, that many of the evils to which we are subject 
that formerly came within the domain of charity, 
have been removed from her charge ; for with the 
increased rewards of industry have come other du- 
ties and obligations, and thus the law of progress is 
secured. The printing-press and sewing-machine 
keep no fewer hands employed than before, for 
these inventions widen the field of enterprise and 
duty. The printing-press increased the demand for 
knowledge, and literature is improved, and more 
books and papers demanded. The sewing-machine, 
in increasing and cheapening labor, calls for more 
fabrics to meet the wants of society, employs more 
hands, elevates toil, and increases not only the de- 
sire and means for neatness and elegance, but also 
adds to the wealth of the world. So the Life Insur- 
ance Company certainly does not cause the sweet 
charities of life to languish, but gives to charity a 
serener face and a more attractive countenance ; in 
fact, raises the entire level of society to a higher 
plane, and confers new dignity upon the human 
race. Though a policy costs something, it goes 
. side by side with our increased resources, and our 
ability to pay. The printing-press and sewing-ma- 
chine belong to our age, and cannot be removed 
without limiting knowledge and degrading toil. So 
Life Insurance is a part of the same age ; and those 
who neglect to embrace it show no evidence of 
4 



38 Life Insurance Offering. 

wisdom or forethought, and belong to a former pe- 
riod — in the language of the world, are behind the 
times — belong to a period previous to those modern 
discoveries, inventions, and conveniences, that give 
additional security to our comfort, happiness, and 
possessions, which adorn our homes with the com- 
bined efforts of art and science, and which go very 
far to make this life a worthy prelude to the higher 
life beyond. 



Longevity. — It is claimed as a fact that Life In- 
surance is favorable to longevity. It is readily ad- 
mitted that many of the sorrows that afflict us 
have their birth in the dread of possible poverty 
reaching those that nature and the laws cause to 
look to us for protection. We often suffer more 
because of our love for others than for ourselves. 
Established facts prove the average duration of 
life among those insured is i7i their favor ■, and the 
causes thereof readily suggest themselves to every 
mind. 

Life Insurance, for security and further accu- 
mulation, is as much to be sought after as the re- 
sult of our continued daily toil, or the reward of 
further prudent and legitimate investments. 



Life Insurance Offering. 39 

Your affairs may become involved, and your 
property be taken for debt. Your stocks and 
shares may fall in value. But a thousand dollars 
assured upon your life can not be alienated from 
your heirs ; and if you have chosen your company 
discreetly, is subjected to no commercial risks. It 
is as nearly sure as any thing earthly can well be. 
■ — Henry Ward Beecher. 



Life Insurance as a Profession. 

One of the objects aimed at in these pages is 
to elevate the business of Life Insurance by dig- 
nifying the profession of the solicitor. In the con- 
sideration of this subject the public, as well as the 
solicitor, has something to do. In the first place, 
it must be admitted that some blame must be at- 
tached to the solicitor or broker. The business of 
Life Insurance has not always been taken up with 
those high aims which the institution deserves and 
now requires. Many, not having time to wait for 
the harvest, have gone forth into the community, 
making statements which had no existence in fact, 
and otherwise, by want of good judgment, present- 



40 Life Insurance Offering. 

ing the subject in such a manner and unreason- 
able times, making the subject unpleasant and the 
person obnoxious to the individual he is address- 
ing. 

PREPARATION. 

Some preparation is needed to make a good soli- 
citor. Aside from those aids which culture and 
temperament bring about, there is a preparation of 
the heart, and a particular blending of all the facul- 
ties necessary in the effort to make one's labor ef- 
fectual. 

" I never shall make a good agent," say many ; 
" I meet with so many rebuffs." " A man must 
have a good deal of brass in his countenance to 
make a good agent," say others. Not so, my friend, 
if you think Life Insurance any exception to the 
general rule. Rebuffs of any kind are unpleasant ; 
but analyze the subject : if you had a cargo of sugar 
to sell, and should go out to seek customers, do 
you become dejected because every person you ask 
does not become a customer? Not so. Why? 
Because you regard your business relations as re- 
ciprocal. Then let me tell you, friend, before start- 
ing out as an agent, take in a full supply of know- 
ledge of the benefit your company offers to the in- 
sured, its superior advantages, it may be, and bring 
your mind to understand the great value of the ben- 



Life Insurance Offering. 41 

efits you confer upon every man you insure — the 
benefit to himself, family, and society. 

TRUTH A REQUISITE. 

If you are sincere and fully informed upon the 
subject, you will .know that your customer cannot 
possibly confer so much benefit upon you, by insur- 
ing his life, as you give him, taking pains to pre- 
sent the claims of your particular company with 
great care and exactitude, knowing that this is not 
only honest, but that the very best thing yon can say 
abotit Life l7isurance, properly conducted, is the ex- 
act tncth. When so presented, your story is the 
best that can be told, and conviction and success 
must surely follow. Any deviation from truth 
will some time be surely discovered, and must re- 
dound to the everlasting shame of the solicitor. In 
the opposite course you will also have the satis- 
faction to see your business kept up, and your mem- 
bers living stones in the temple. 

THE CLAIMS OF THE AGENT. 

As was before intimated, the public has some- 
thing to do in the matter. It is the duty of every 
man to insure his life. Having done that, to induce 
his friends to follow his example. Were all persons 
insured, poverty would almost be reduced to the 
sole companionship of vice ; self-respect would be 
4* 



42 Life Insurci7ice Offering, 

greatly promoted, and the whole community be 
profited. This being the case, when you find an 
agent honestly, faithfully, and ardently engaged in 
his work, recognize him as a worthy laborer in 
the great field Providence gives us to till. Give 
him a helping hand ; no field of philanthropy or 
enterprise offers a more useful calling. If engaged 
in with right motives, no calling is capable of pro- 
ducing greater beneficial results. 

LIFE INSURANCE AS A PURSUIT. 

An experienced, intelligent, and worthy Life In- 
surance agent produces, by his education and busi- 
ness experience, a character almost unequalled and 
unattainable in any other position or pursuit. Such 
a one, if necessary, is fitted to command armies, to 
sway public opinion for good, and for the highest 
position that society places at our command. This 
language is not extravagance ; it but expresses the 
exact truth. Let both the agent and the public 
do their duty — the agent fitting himself for the 
business as for a profession worthy of his best en- 
ergies, and the public gladly assisting those engag- 
ed in this good work for the welfare of society and 
of its individual members. Philanthropy has no 
wider field of labor. If the benefits which Life In- 
surance confers were of a negative character, its 
claims would be more highly appreciated, as great 



Life Insurance Offering. 43 

as they are acknowledged to be. From the very 
nature of the circumstances, the progress of Life 
Insurance must be an individual work. Has not 
the agent a right to ask you for your services ? First 
for yourself, then particularly among your individual 
friends. 

LIFE INSURANCE AS A LEVER. 

Life Insurance is the lever which this century 
places in our hands to elevate the whole character 
of society. Charity need not always go in rags ; 
it may become transfigured and become visible, by 
not merely preventing our loved ones from suffer- 
ing, but by placing them with the surroundings of 
comfort and of a refined life. There are but few 
who cannot afford the small outlay required for a 
policy that would produce this result. To make 
this more usual, to make it a duty obligatory upon 
every individual, is as much the duty of each indi- 
vidual in society as the agent who now brings the 
matter before you and respectfully asks your in- 
fluence. 



What we do for ourselves will soon be for- 
gotten. What we do for others may be the vision 
to cheer the soul when the eye can no longer be- 
hold our loved ones. 



44 Life Insurance Offer ing. 



Landmarks. 

In the large business of Life Companies certain 
landmarks have become so clear and definite in 
their nature, as to appear like beacons, which no 
company is at liberty or can safely put away. Not 
seeing them, is no evidence they do not exist, and 
is only the precursor of certain ruin. While these 
must at all times be clearly kept in view, yet all 
privileges not inconsistent with these facts are 
cheerfully allowed and granted from time to time, 
as present need may require or new wants may 
arise. The public, however, should not be deceived 
by new inventions or withdrawal of proper restric- 
tions when offered ; for while their safety may be 
questioned, they are only offered at the expense of 
the greater number of policy-holders. The most 
liberal policy any company can adopt is, to avoid 
these dangers, while at the same time affording all 
possible accommodation. Such conditions are few 
and simple in their character, and plainly contained 
in each policy, that each party may know when a 
permit from the company is necessary. 



Life Insurance Offering. 45 



Insurance vs. Assurance. 

In England, matters relating to indemnification 
for fire are usually called Insurance ; those relating 
to life contingencies, Assurance. In this country, 
with very few exceptions, though inclining to the 
English custom, the word Insurance is used in both 
connections. A very good explanation of the dif- 
ference has thus been stated by Babbage : 

" Assurance is a contract dependent on the duration of life, which 
must either happen or fail. Insurance is a contract relating to any 
other uncertain event, which may partly happen or partly fail. Thus, 
in adjusting the Insurance of houses and ships, regard is always had 
to the chance of salvage arising from partial destruction." 



Importance of Life Insurance.— u It is a 
strange anomaly that men should be careful to in- 
sure their houses, their furniture, their ships, their 
merchandise, and yet neglect to assure their lives, 
surely the most important of all to their families, 
and far more subject to loss." 



" There is nothing in the commercial world 
which approaches, even remotely, to the security of 
a well-established and prudently managed Life In- 
surance Company. " — De Morgan. 



46 Life Insurance Offering. 



fAY y 



our Premiums Promptly. 



Life Insurance is a contract between the company 
and the members. The company agrees, upon the 
punctual payment of the proper installments or pre- 
miums at stated periods — annually, semi-annually, 
or quarterly — that it will, when the policy becomes 
a claim, pay so much money to the party designated. 

Care in keeping one's engagements is one of the 
leading maxims of all good business men. It keeps 
the hands securely upon the prizes of life. In 
nothing is it of more importance than in the pay- 
ment of premiums. So large are the interests in- 
volved, that many make the same note of the time 
in their books or diary as for the payment of their 
notes or any other important engagements. Some- 
times, however, persons, through want of know- 
ledge, expect the agent to attend to the payment for 
ihem, if they neglect doing so. 

No agent of a company has the right to consider 
a premium paid till actually so. If policies are to 
be continued in force, the company can make no 
calculations of its' liabilities unless the premium is 
in hand. The premium not being paid when due, 
annuls the contract — necessarily so. The reat- 
taching can then be only by mutual agreement, and 
a reexamination, to show the party to be in good 



Life Insurance Offering. 47 

health, is the first essential. If he is not in good 
health, he can have no claim legally or justly. 

In Fire Insurance, sometimes the agent assumes 
this responsibility by paying the premiums himself; 
but the case is entirely different. The character of 
the risk is fixed by the policy, and the company can 
annul the policy at any time. The rates are fixed 
to afford a presumable profit to the stockholders. 
In Life Insurance, the character of the risk is fixed 
only at the beginning, and the company cannot 
annul any policy because that character changes, 
and in a mutual company it affords insurance at its 
exact cost. Life Insurance proceeds after fixed 
laws. Safety is an essential element. It cannot 
allow policies to be dropped carelessly or purposely 
and reassume the risk, except when safety is again 
reestablished. It may be that the decline of one's 
health or the changed character of the risk was the 
very reason why the protection of the policy was 
again sought. In this case, if permitted, the 
prompt-paying members would be the sufferers, and 
the key-stone of the arch taken from the institution, 
periling its interests to all. The keeping of engage- 
ments, therefore, on the part of the members, is as 
essential as on the part of the company. One can- 
not exist without the other. 

Some insured parties also mistake the meaning 
of the term " n on- forfeiture. -' The words should 



4§ Life Insurance Offering. 

mean only, in the event of premiums not being con- 
tinued, that the policy shall stand good for a certain 
amount. This can only be accomplished by fixing 
the premium to be paid in a certain number of 
payments, say, 5, 10, 15, or 20 years ; the amount, 
in the event premiums are discontinued, to be 
proportioned exactly to the number of those pay- 
ments. Of course, in these cases, the premiums 
will be correspondingly higher. The term "non- 
forfeiture " never means that, in neglect of prompt 
payment of premiums, the original contract will not 
be invalidated. In its broader sense it means, that 
when a policy may have a value for surrender, in 
accordance with its specifications, the rules of the 
company, and the rights of the remaining members, 
that that value shall be allowed the retiring mem- 
ber. The rule is generally, for evident reasons, 
that this arrangement shall be made before the 
policy expires. The mutual and binding obligations 
of the contract are thus recognized by both the com- 
pany and the insured. 

The conclusion of the' whole matter is, if you 
wish your policy to stand in its original form, with- 
out doubt or reservation, gg^BE careful to pay 

YOUR PREMIUMS PROMPTLY, c^gg 



Life Insurance Offering. 49 



The Homestead Saved. 

About a year since, a robust, hard-working- 
looking man called to insure his life. He stated 
he lived in Virginia, that he owned a farm there, 
upon which he had made a partial payment, but 
that the place was encumbered with a mortgage 
of $5000, and that, in the event of his death, 
the property would be entirely swept away to pay 
the mortgage. The whole transaction, he said, 
must be kept from his wife ; for she had often 
declared that the proceeds of the Life Policy 
would be the price of his life, and that she would 
never take the money. The agent said he would 
be answerable for that; and the party being of 
the same way of thinking, the application was 
made and policy delivered. He stated he had 
borrowed the money to pay the premium, but he 
could not ease his mind until this business had been 
finally settled. 

A little over six months from that time, the 

clergyman of the town of L , where the party 

resided, wrote a letter to the agent, stating the 
party alluded to above had contracted a fever, and 
had died after a brief illness, and that, among his 
effects, a Life Policy in the company he repre- 
5 



5° Life Insurance Offering. 

sented had been found. He desired the imme- 
diate payment of the money, as the family was in 
distress. His letter inclosed one from the widow, 
who, not being acquainted with the easy custom 
in such cases for collection of losses that occur, 
made the most pitiful appeal. The proper papers 
were sent and duly executed, and the policy 
paid. The homestead was saved, the wife not 
refusing the money, but receiving it as a loving 
legacy, leaving the homestead and a united family, 
the testimony of the fidelity of the absent husband 
and father, and the beneficence of the institution 
of Life Insurance. 



Do not Delay ! — Having made up your mind 
to insure, do so now. Many instances are known 
where death has intervened between the determina- 
tion and the act. If in health, to-morrow may not 
find you so, and you will be denied the privilege. 
To-morrow ! it may not come. " I cannot afford 
it." Then how can your family afford to do with- 
out it ? The very difficulty that may exist is the 
strongest argument for making the effort. To say 
you have no care for the future would be a reproach 
that but few will invite. 



Life Insurance Offering. 



5* 



Better than a Sayings Bank. 

The father who puts $250 into a bank, and dies 
within the year, will leave to his widow $260 or 
$265, which perhaps may meet the expenses of his 
funeral. But the parent who, having the same de- 
posit with a Life Company, has been similarly sum- 
moned, will have left behind him a fund of $10,000. 

And it must not be forgotten that, in case of his 
death during the first ten or fifteen years, the heirs 
of a man who is insured realize from his investment 
in the Life office from 3700 to 200 per cent more 
than could have been realized from the savings 
bank. A person insured for $1000, age 33, pre- 
mium say $25, would leave to his family, if he dies 
during the first year of his policy, an amount equal 
to a profit of 3673 per cent upon the cost of the 
policy ; and so on through the history of the insur- 
ance, as shown below : 



Age of 


Age of 


Am't of 


Premiums 


Rec^d in case 


Per Cent of 


Insured. 


Policy, 


Policy. 


comfdbp.c. 


of Death. 


Profit. 


33 


1 


$1000 


$26 50 


$1000 00 


3673 p. ct. 


37 


5 


1000 


M9 38 


110S 06 


642 " . 


42 


10 


1000 


349 29 


1323 73 


279 ' 


47 


15 


1000 


616 81 


1581 05 


156 ' 


52 


20 


1000 


974 82 


1813 96 


86 " 


57 


25 


1000 


1453 9i 


1969 75 


35 1 


62 


30 


1000 


2095 04 


2199 46 


5 " 



52 Life Insurance Offering. 

The fundamental advantage of Life Insurance 
is, that it equalizes human productiveness. Every 
man insures his property against loss by fire ; is it 
of any less importance that he should insure to his 
family a preservation of the capital which inheres 
in his own productiveness ? — Life Insurance Cou- 
pons. 



Benefits. — The claims which it has upon all are 
now generally conceded. A person who neglects 
insuring his life is coming to be thought more un- 
wise and improvident than if he neglected to insure 
his house, his merchandise, or ships. Our proper- 
ty may not be destroyed by fire, but some time each 
one of us must die ! 

To those dependent upon a salary, a policy is in- 
dispensable. To those possessing more of this 
world's goods, it appeals, first, as a security against 
all possible contingencies. No one now wealthy is 
sure of dying so. Again, as a means of accumula- 
tion ; for, taking the expectation of life, a policy of 
insurance on your life will probably yield you a fair 
interest for your annual investments, beside the full 
return of the amount paid. In the event of previ- 
ous death, the policy is, beyond question, the best 
: nvestment that can be made, often increasing, very 
many times, the amount of premiums paid. 



Life Insurance Offering. 53 

A Duty. — No man has a right to leave to others 
what Providence provides us the means to antici- 
pate. Lord Lyndhurst, late Lord Chancellor of 
England, declares, " No man is free from reproach 
if his life is not insured." Doctor Hawks also de- 
clares, " Life Insurance is not only a humane but a 
Christian institution," and quotes from the apostle 
the duty of every man to provide for his own house- 
hold. The chief advantage of Life Instirance is, 
that it makes this provision just when most needed, 
and when every other means may fail. 

Property. — If you have a policy of insurance, 
you are as well off as if you held a deed of real 
estate to bequeath, requiring, by way of taxes, the 
payment of the same annual amount. The pre- 
miums paid should not be considered an expense 
any more than any other investment, or deposits in 
a bank for accumulation — leaving out of considera- 
tion the added benefits. 



Life Assurance Companies not only under- 
take the equalization of life, but also the return of 
the same with compound interest. They are capi- 
talists, constantly looking out for long investments 
and well organized to deal profitably in securities. 
— Dr. Farr. 

5* 



54 Life Insurance Offering. 



JHE f 



amily Safeguard 






" I would insure my life, but my wife i.s violently 
opposed to it." We sometimes bear this statement 
made as a reason for declining a policy. The re- 
mark, however, is less frequently heard than for- 
merly. It should be overruled by every husband, 
father, or brother ; for when the meaning is ex- 
tracted, it is found to exist only in the very sensi- 
tive feelings of woman, resulting in a misapprehen- 
sion of the principles and objects arrived at in Life 
Insurance. An explanation of these principles and 
objects is the best remedy for all objections. Ex- 
perience abundantly settles the benefit that Life 
Insurance confers upon the family. 

NOT INSURED — THE CONSEQUENCES. 

A fact will often enforce a truth that the best 
reasoning without it would fail to accomplish. A 
woman whose husband has just died, brings the 
writer three policies on his life, which had lapsed 
about a year since, amounting in all to $13,000. 
He had paid only two or three premiums on each. 
His wife troubled him so much about the matter, 
thinking the present expenditure of the money 
more beneficial to the family or wanting it for pre- 
sent indulgence, regardless of the future, that he 



Life Insurance Offering. -55 

yielded to her solicitations. She is now almost 
without a dollar, with three little children, and but 
few friends to assist her. Instead of having the 
amount of the insurance for the support of herself 
and little ones, she is soliciting money for the pur- 
chase of a sewing-machine. Many instances like 
the above can be given by every active agent, such 
circumstances being of frequent occurrence. 

REASON SHOULD GOVERN. 

Reason, and not unenlightened feeling, should 
govern in all cases. The money paid is not for the 
life of the insured, death being only the event, when 
the money saved by the united earnings of the 
family is made available, and the accumulated ad- 
vantages of the policy are intended to culminate. 

So important is this matter to every woman, she 
should not rest contented until she has persuaded 
husband, father, or brother to make this wise pro- 
vision for her benefit and that of the family. It is 
peculiarly the family safeguard. 



The chief secret of life is to do the right thing 
at the right ti?ne. The right time is now. To put 
off our duty at one time, renders it easier the next 
time to put it further away. In that case, in the 
end, we are sure of nothing. 



56 Life Instirance Offering. 



Life Insurance for All. 

ENDOWMENT PLAN. 

It can be stated, without reservation, that no 
person can be so situated that some form of Life 
Insurance would not be a benefit to him. Particu- 
lar attention is asked to the Endowment Plan, 
which secures the payment of the amount of 
insurance when the party arrives at a specified age, 
or to his representatives in the event of previous 
death. 

There is one consideration that leads many to 
adopt this kind of insurance. This plan unites the 
benefits of Life Insurance with that of a savings- 
bank more nearly than any other, and secures two 
things — the certainty of your investment being re- 
alized at a given time, or the earlier benefit to your 
family in the event of your previous death. 

If the Non- Forfeiture plan be added, you secure 
in one policy all that can be accomplished by a 
savings-bank, or any other investment, adding to it 
the benefits of the insurance. 

Many are influenced to accept the Endowment 
plan because, while it protects the family from the 



Life Insurance Offering. 57 

commencement, it secures at a given age, when 
many of the purposes of a policy have been accom- 
plished, the return of all the sums expended with a 
probably fair interest for the investment ; an in- 
vestment made up of such comparatively small 
sums and being so distributed that the insurance 
appears almost like a gratuity. 



MISCONCEPTIONS, 
POWERS OF ASSOCIATIONS OF NUMBERS. 

One of the strangest misconceptions upon the 
subject of Life Insurance, is that it is in some way 
contrary to the established order of things, promis- 
ing some forbidden benefit because not attainable 
by ordinary individual effort when solely so em- 
ployed. It is, however, no exceptional fact either 
in business or experience. It is simply producing 
the benefit of an immediate result on a certain con- 
tingency or at a specified time by the ordinary mode 
of association, by an application of scientific princi- 
ples and existing business rules. 

It is a well-established fact, that the highest 
civilization can not be carried on as to religion, 
philanthropy, education, or business by individual 
effort aside from association of numbers. Churches 



58 Life Insurance Offering. 

can not be built, schools can not be maintained, 
ships nor railroads can be constructed, nor can the 
traffic, commerce, or convenience of the world be 
maintained without it. So true is this, that much 
of the legislation of the country is directed to aid 
and regulate such matters, conferring special privi- 
leges when the good of the whole is thereby pro- 
moted, and limiting their operations when neces- 
sary to obtain the same object by interposing its 
authority. 

It will be perceived that Life Insurance is 
founded upon the same general principles by which 
communities and nationalities exist and are main- 
tained. It is just as much the product of a pro- 
gressive society as the school-house, the telegraph, 
the savings-bank, the university, the state or nation. 
He is the best citizen who, according to his intelli- 
gence and ability, accepts all such instrumental- 
ities, especially when they have in view the interest 
of those whose protection it is among his first 
duties to provide for and secure. Those who rea- 
dily avail themselves of its benefits are therefore 
those who live up to the age in which their lot is 
cast, and may always be found in the front rank 
of every trade, profession, and business. They are 
the only living links to the future. 

Another fallacy is that a man insures himself. 



Life Insurance Offering 59 

There is no such thing possible. He may, if he 
will, forego the benefits which Life Insurance pro- 
vides ; but he can not insure himself by keeping 
his money, or spending it for other purposes, re- 
gardless of the objects which it so abundantly pro- 
vides, and for which there is no possible substitute. 



The chief reason why every man with any one 
dependent upon him for support should insure is, 
in the final settlement, the uncertainty of all other 
investments. Any active agent can testify to the 
fact that but few even of those who in life were ac- 
counted wealthy, leave the world so that a policy of 
$5000 to $20,000 is not a material benefit to the 
family or estate. In the final summing up, it oftener 
proves the bulk of the "property that remains un- 
touched or undiminished ; in many instances, all 
that may be left. 



" Strange that a man who owes to his wife the 
chief charm of his existence, the every-day comfort 
of his life, should be able to look heartlessly to 
that period when their last parting shall take place 
— when, removed to that w r orld where, to him, all is 
hope and consolation, he shall have willfully left 
her in darkness and desolation, steeped in poverty 
and wretchedness, to struggle with the hard justice 
of a hard-handed world." 



6o Life Insurance Offering. 



Keep up Your Policies. 

Having put your hand to the plough, don't look 
back ! You may be a little weary, and the path stony, 
but keep your hand on the plough. Don't let go ! 
Soon better prospects will come, and the harvest 
will reward you for all your pains. Get that stone out 
of the way, or around it, and then every difficulty will 
disappear. You will feel better than if you let the 
horses go back to the barn, and the plough remain 
in the field, and put no seed in the ground. 

A party insured had two policies on his life 
for $5000 each. He was a well-known broker in 
this city, and a prominent member of one of 
the leading churches in the city of Brooklyn. 
He had been insured for many years, and his 
policies had a large value for surrender. Being 
sorely pressed for money in a temporary business 
panic, he was tempted to sell one of his policies ; 
and contrary to the agent's advice, who pointed 
out other modes of relief, sold his first policy to 
the company, and received its full value. In less 
than a month from that time he died. Of course, 
the other policy of insurance was paid to the 
family — this one was lost to them. 

Now, the policy is intended to protect the family 



Life Insurance Offering 61 

in just such cases as these, and the more stiingent 
your pecuniary affairs, the more you should cling to 
your policy, and keep it for the purposes for which 
it was intended — to protect the family, the creditor, 
or estate. Many, in such cases, finding the security 
at hand, are disposed to sell out their privileges and 
means of protection, intending to take out a new 
policy at some other time in the future. 

Let the policy alone. Keep it as the light in the 
distance, as the anchor in the storm. Hold fast to 
it. Don't let it go. Better borrow the money to 
pay the premiums, if need be, or assign it as colla- 
teral for present assistance, if you have no other 
mode ; but keep up the premiums. Don't let the 
policy go. The agent can always offer you good 
advice, and point out means of safety. The fact of 
your having a policy on your life is very often the 
chief recommendation to the creditor to commend 
yourself to him to be lenient and patient. Certainly 
it will give you confidence, and strength to bare your 
right arm and to battle manfully for success. 
— ♦ — 

Life Insurance proposes security against no 
imaginary evil. It is a matter of public recognition 
that the number of persons who, in a series of 
years, gain a competency, is comparatively few. 
Death seldom occurs without some person is 
affected by it, oftener for evil than for good. 
6 



Gz Life Insurance Offering. 

" Life Assurance," says Rev. Dr. Storrs, ot 
Brooklyn, " contributes effectually to make life it- 
self longer, society happier, the aggregate prosv 
perity of the community greater ; and just so far 
as it shall extend, while still conducted on sound 
principles, it will multiply the kindly bonds that 
connect men, while encouraging economy, invigo- 
rating enterprise, justifying hope in each individual, 
and shedding the light of a more serene happiness 
into many households." 



Objections — flow Best Answered. 

There are two ways of presenting a subject, one 
by answering objections, the other by positive 
statements. By the former, the demonstrator is 
apt to tarry too long on the level with the objector's 
mind ; by the latter, he takes him up at once to the 
height where he can see and examine for himself 
Whatever these objections are, you must remember 
that their solution is far more serious to you than 
to any other person; for if Life Insitrance offers 
you and your family positive good, these objections 
stand in the way of your accepting it. You there- 
fore do yourself a great wrong to exchange a care- 
ful examination of the subject for controversy, 
while the tendency of the latter is to make our 



Life Insurance Offering. 63 

judgment captive to the feelings, which are gene- 
rally enlisted on the side we take in argument. 

These remarks only refer to those trifling objec- 
tions so often made by persons who desire to put 
off the day of decision, not to the request for full 
particulars and an ample unfolding of the subject, 
such as proper prudence in our monetary affairs 
always justifies and even demands. The science 
of Life Insurance is so exact in its calculations, 
that the more it is studied the more complete the 
system discloses itself to be. It is chiefly in the 
presentation of these facts that the agent hopes to 
interest you, and thus to arrive at a satisfactory re- 
sult by a shorter method than the former one under 
consideration. By understanding the subject fully, 
your objections will be removed. By letting in the 
light, the darkness retires. The glorious sunlight 
searches and reveals every thing. 



A Life Insurance Policy is the most valuable 
species of property. Its security is always accumu- 
lating. It can be used for the benefit of the family, 
for business, or for the individual. It is the last to 
be relinquished in case of misfortune. If necessary,, 
'friends can continue it, and be secured in their ad- v 
varices. It is immediate in its benefits, and pro- 
vides against all contingencies. 



64 Life Itisurance Offering* 

Fire and Life Insurance Contrasted.— 
The modes of operation and results arrived at are 
essentially different. In fire insurance you gene- 
rally pay so much premium annually to insure your 
property against loss by fire. If your property is 
not destroyed, the premium you pay is a finality 
nearly all fire insurance companies being stock 
companies. In life insurance, if the policy is kept 
up till it becomes a claim, it is probable that all the 
sums you have paid for insurance will be returned 
to you with a large increase of profits. Your house 
or ship may never be destroyed ; but you are sure 
to die, and the probability of your policy becoming a 
claim in any one year is five times greater than that 
your dwelling will burn down. Nothing can be 
clearer, in contrasting fire with life insurance, while 
both are important, than that the latter is far more 
important, and affords greater benefits. It is even 
a wiser investment. 



If all were insured, poverty, in its most de- 
grading forms, would be unknown, vice would di- 
minish, and the tide of sorrow be assuaged. Nor 
is it alone in these respects that Life Insurance 
should be encouraged. It not only prevents evils, 
but furnishes positive means for refined comforts, 
adding to the source of human happiness, and assist- 
ing the individual and nation to a higher civilization. 



Life Instirance Offering. 65 



Providence. 

Many have a very erroneous opinion as to what 
Life Insurance contemplates, and regard it as in 
some way conflicting with the providence that regu- 
lates the duration of life. We do not propose to 
insure a man to live from year to year, and pay so 
much insurance by way of forfeit in the event of his 
death. We propose simply to assure a man's es- 
tate, family, or creditor, a given sum at the termi- 
nation of life ; or himself at a given age, if he at- 
tains it, so much money. The calculations with the 
company are merely a matter of the average number 
of times it will receive premiums from the persons 
it insures at any given age. It is the knowledge 
of providential laws, 7nade applicable to human 
wants and necessities, that furnishes the basis of 
our noble superstructure. The objection above 
mentioned would apply even more forcibly against 
Fire or Marine Insurance. To be consistent, such 
persons would insure neither their houses, goods, 
nor ships. 

We entertain the idea that it is in the discovery 
of the laws that regulate human affairs, and in the 
application of that knowledge to our wants and 
necessities, that Providence designs to confer the 
greatest amount of good upon the human family. 



66 Life Insurance Offering. 

We do not suppose that all is yet known ; therefore, 
we have faith in human progress. He best trusts 
in Providence who, taking cognizance of providen- 
tial laws, applies the result of such knowledge and 
experience to the best uses of life — the protection 
of his family and the welfare of society. 



Stability of Life Insurance as 

an Institution. 

Life Insurance is based on the average expecta- 
tion of life, and the laws that govern accumulations 
by the compounding of interest. The calculations 
are all strictly mathematical. The excess of inter- 
est, economy in expenditures, and a more favorable 
mortality than the table calls for, make up the large 
dividends returned to the members. The insurance 
of a large number of lives gives each party insured 
the benefit of the average longevity and accumula- 
tions of the whole, no matter when death may oc- 
cur. Life Insurance, therefore, being based on the 
strictest mathematical accuracy and experience, 
has in it every element of stability and permanence. 
There is no more probability of Life Insurance go- 
ing into disuse than the sciences of chemistry, na- 
vigation, astronomy, or political economy. The 
more Life Insurance, is understood, the more uni- 



Life Insurance Offering. 67 

versal will become its practice. The more intelli- 
gent and thrifty the community, the more speedy 
its progress, and, as years accumulate, the more per- 
manent the foundations and secure the structure. 



A Good Agent. — Do you want to make a suc- 
cessful life insurance agent ? You will not do so by 
taking an office, putting up a sign, advertising large- 
ly in the papers, and waiting to employ solicitors. 
Before retiring at night, read over the pamphlets of 
your company, ascertain about its rates and work- 
ings. The next morning make out a list of your 
friends, or plan out your work for the day, and 
fierso7ially present the claims of the company you 
represent. Do not wait to become a professor of 
mathematics, a medical examiner, or a great statis- 
tician ; but go to work, and then all necessary know- 
ledge will come to you. In religion, he that does 
his Maker's will " shall know of the doctrine." So 
in life insurance, he is in the way of knowing all 
about his business that he requires to know, or is 
useful to him, who daily works in the way indicated. 
The contrary mode would be like steaming up a 
ship, manning your vessel, and never going to sea. 
Up with your anchor — ship ahoy! Spread your 
sails, put out to sea ! Don't tie up at the wharf 1 



68 Life Insurance Offering. 

When a Policy expires. — A Life Insurance 
policy expires at twelve o'clock m. on the day up to 
which the premium has been paid. If premiums 
are not paid when due, according to the terms of 
the policy, the same is made void, but it may be 
continued within a reasonable time, upon satisfac- 
tory evidence of good health being furnished. 
Agents of the company are not authorized to waive 
forfeiture. 



Increase Vour Policies. 

Times as to the value of money have undoubtedly 
changed. $10,000 to $20,000 are not now any larger 
then were formerly $5000. Increase your policies to 
meet the necessities and opportunities of the pres- 
ent. Many are seeking Life Insurance as one 
among the best forms of investment. It is now 
not uncommon to find people insuring from $50,000 
to $100,000, while there are many instances beyond 
that sum. The amount selected should of course 
be dependent upon the wants of the party and the 
means to meet the premiums as they mature. 



Life Insurance. — "Though based upon self- 
interest, yet it is the most enlightened and benevo- 
lent form which the project of self-interest ever 
took." — De Morgan. 



Life Insurance Offering. 69 

)AY.I 



Jo-p 



Would you do a good thing — 
Give the soul its true ring ? 

Work while 'tis day ; 
Give now a hearty pull, 
Do it with the heart full 

Without delay. 

The stream is passing you, 
And friends are leaving too — 

The friends of youth ; 
Wait not till to-morrow, 
Its time do not borrow — 

Not yours in truth. 

Who hath seen to-morrow ? 
Lives its light to borrow? 

Not like the sun 
In glory seeks its rest 
Behind the curtained west, 

His duty done. 

'Tis best if quickly done, 
Ere time its sands has run 

In life's great race ; 
Then from the heart it springs, 
And to the heart it sings 

Most fitting grace. 

To-morrow is God's time, 
And with it all things rhyme, 

The future hymn. 
To-day is all he gives ; 
Who in the morrow lives 

Except by Him ? 



70 Life Insurance Offering. 



Extent of Life Insurance. 

The extent to which Life Insurance is now 
practiced is scarcely realized by the public, though 
known to be gigantic in its proportions. From the 
New- York State Superintendent's report last ren- 
dered, the following facts are shown as to the 
business in the United States, ending January ist, 
1870: 

Total assets $222,933,209 

" amount insurance 1 >935,539,i69 

" number of policies in force. . 656,140 

" income for the year $97, 339, 300 

" policy claims paid in the year 15,548,714 
" dividends paid in the year. . . 14,116,594 
" number policies issued in the 

year 237,871 

An institution of this character shows its adap- 
tation to human wants, and the amount of losses 
paid to the widow and the fatherless commends it 
to the care and practice of our whole people. No 
person can afford to do without its protection. 



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